Speaking and listening across the primary curriculum: an entry to improved learning and a focus for CPD

The purpose of this study was to examine opportunities and challenges in practicing Continuous professional Development (CPD) in selected schools in Addis Ababa City Administration. Questionnaire pilot tested in two primary schools was administered to 300 randomly selected primary school teachers in Addis Ababa. With regard to the variable "Teachers' self-reflection", male respondents tend to use self reflection techniques more than female respondents to improve their career development. The mean score for teachers teaching at the second cycle was found to be statistically higher than that of teachers working in the first cycle of primary education indicating that teachers in the second cycle tend to use peer discussion, self-assessment of one's own daily routines, and use of portfolio more often than their counterparts teaching in the first cycle. The mentoring process stood as number one contributing factor for teacher professional development followed by action research and school in-house workshops. Lack of knowledge and experience on the theoretical underpinnings, implementation inconsistencies, lack of budget to run the program at school level, lack of incentive procedures to recognize teachers who made utmost efforts to change themselves and their colleagues were major problems identified from the qualitative data. Despite these problems, the new CPD has entailed a number of opportunities and useful experiences in terms of empowering school teachers and ameliorating school-based problems related to the teaching learning process. Future implications of the research were also suggested.

One of the strategies to improve teachers' skills and professionalism is the practice of continuous professional development. To fulfill the demands of students and learning in the 21st century, teachers must have a strong foundation and knowledge of ongoing professional development. However, a-business-as-usual continuous professional development does not contribute to any significant improvements for teachers of junior high school in Pematangsiantar. The objective of this research was to develop a management model for teachers’ continuous development. This is carried out through competency-based training with a heutagogy approach. A development model called ADDIE, which stands for Analysis, Design, Develop, Implementation, and Evaluation was used to develop the management model. The subject of this research was 80 junior high school students in Pematangsiantar. They were divided into 30 and 50 people for the limited trial and the broad trial, respectively. Questionnaires were distributed as the instrument of data collection. The data was then analyzed using a statistical descriptive analysis technique. The research found that the effectiveness of the competency-based training management model was measured by the N-Gain score, in which the G-value was 0.79 and 0.82 for limited trial and broad trial, respectively, which was in the high category. The results of the assessment of the effectiveness of the model obtained an average value of 94%, which was in the "very good" category. The effectiveness of the training program was assessed from the aspects of reactions, learning, behavior, and results, and the results show that the assessment of the classroom action research training program obtained an average score of 92%, or a very good category, which means that the classroom action research training program is very effective in improving teachers’ competence. The significance of this model has been proven to give an innovative solution to teachers’ continuous professional development. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2023-07-01-014 Full Text: PDF

This article reports part of an empirical research project investigating the professional development, knowledge and beliefs of a number of teachers working in primary schools throughout England who were identified as effective at teaching literacy. The larger study employed a range of approaches, including a survey, interviews and observation of lessons. The article presents a detailed case study analysis of the literacy‐related professional development experience of a subsample of the effective teachers of literacy. The case studies highlight the interwoven nature of experience gained within a range of professional contexts, including classroom, school, local education authority and national loci. The importance of meso‐level support for professional learning and development, such as that provided by local education authority advisers, is highlighted. The case studies indicate the importance of the affective and personal dimensions within longer‐term professional development, and also the creative interplay between autonomy and collegiality. The non‐linear, and often long‐term, nature of career development is also emphasised: particularly in relation to primary schools, where teachers may change subject or phase orientations over time. It is argued that the long‐term nature of professional development poses particular challenges for policies that focus increasingly on measurable impact and outcomes.

PurposeThere is little research into how teachers think about and teach creative writing and its redrafting and how this might differ depending upon the age of the pupils being taught. This paper aims to compare the creative writing conceptualisations and practices of primary school teachers (5–11-year olds) and secondary school teachers (11–18-year-olds) in England through a qualitative survey. This comparison enables to think about the influence of policy on creative writing in primary and secondary schools as well as what professional development could look like for these teachers to improve the teaching of creative writing.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative survey exploring the creative writing and redrafting pedagogies and conceptualisations was responded to by primary school teachers (n = 18) and secondary school teachers (n = 19). Taking an ecological view of creative writing and teacher identity, the authors undertake a comparative analysis of the survey data using the 5A’s theory of creativity (Glaveanu, 2013) and a view of professional identity existing within “landscapes of practice” (Wenger-Trayner, Wenger-Trayner, 2015). This enables to illuminate how and why creative writing is contextually afforded, or otherwise, in primary and secondary landscapes of practice.FindingsThis analysis demonstrates how the redrafting of creative writing is marginalised in both landscapes of practice and how redrafting is largely conceptualised as a technical rather than critical or creative action. The authors show how teachers, particularly in primary school, aim for their pupils to produce “products” rather than engaging in the “process” of creative writing. This analysis also shows that whilst creative writing is overall more marginalised in the secondary school landscape, it is often taught through process approaches. In both landscapes of practice, the re-drafting of creative writing is largely taught through product approaches.Research limitations/implicationsThis research is potentially skewed by the fact that we recruited our participants through networks relating the teaching of English, including creative writing. What is worrying about this limitation, however, is that the picture of creative writing in schools in England probably leans more to a product approach than the picture this research has uncovered.Practical implicationsProfessional development for teachers in both landscapes is needed in relation to pedagogical actions for creative writing and its redrafting. Some of the key differences we have outlined in conceptualisations and practices between primary and secondary schools landscapes, notably the overuse of product-based teaching actions in primary landscapes, and some of the differences we have outlined within discrete landscapes of practice, notably how some primary school teachers feel more confident to challenge the product-based approach, with one conceptualising redrafting as “creative”, indicate that professional development should involve teachers working across schools.Social implicationsPolicy needs to be reformed to move away from the technicist view of creative writing held in both landscapes of practice. Linked to this, the way creative writing is assessed as a product in secondary schools needs to change – the re-introduction of portfolio-based coursework (Bishop, 1990) would provide the affordance of redrafting as an action central to creative writing processes.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is a rare piece of research which compares primary and secondary school teachers’ approaches to teaching creative writing. It shows that primary school teachers can be formulaic in the way they teach creative writing, using product approaches. However, in secondary schools the picture is different: teachers, particularly those, who are writers themselves, give students more agency in redrafting and shaping their writing. This indicates how professional development should involve primary and secondary school teachers in dialogue with one another to cross boundaries of practice.

Continuous professional development of Liberia's midwifery workforce—A coordinated multi-stakeholder approach

Continuous professional development (CPD) underpins safe, effective practice by ensuring that social workers acquire and sustain up-to-date knowledge and skills. Additionally, CPD is critical to theoretically rooted, evidence-informed decision-making and intervention. Despite the reported benefits, there are many barriers such as high caseloads and the time required to participate. This paper presents the findings from a proof-of-concept study which piloted a new model for CPD: the Social Work Online Team Training (SWOTT) toolkit. Each themed toolkit incorporates research evidence and/or new theoretical frameworks and is built upon a team-based, peer learning approach. Toolkits have two components: an online module and peer group supervision using a complex case study. The pilot and evaluation integrated two data collection workstreams: a pre-intervention survey and a post-intervention survey; and interviews. Participants reported that the CPD was relevant, accessible, enabling them to refresh knowledge of core theory and acquire new theoretical and evidence-informed knowledge. The toolkit design facilitated deep learning as participants used the online training to critically discuss the complex case study using peer reflection. Overall, findings demonstrated the value of shared learning experiences through the combined modes of learning (online/in-person) resulting in evidence-informed CPD with real-world relevance to practice contexts.

School improvement in changeable degrees and phases requires change. In order for schools to become successful, they must do effort toward Continuous Professional Development (CPD) which makes powerful teachers to lead this change. The only way schools will improve is through the collaboration that takes place in education communities. One of the purposes of this study was to explore the connections between schools functioning as CPD and increases in student achievement. Continued professional development is recommended for Primary school teachers and Primary schools in the areas that teachers responded to least favorably. Further research should be conducted to examine the relationships among teachers’ perceptions based on gender, and age. More professional development is recommended to improve teacher relationships as they relate to increase awareness and improve skills in cultural proficiency and sensitivity. It is the hope that by improving upon the professional development activities and experiences for all primary school teachers, teachers’ perceptions about the degree to which their schools function as CPD will be determined by improved practices in teaching and learning. DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2014.v3n4p395

The subject of the study is the general professional initial training of police officers aimed at the formation of the personality of the subject of professional activity – a police officer as a citizen, defender of life, health, rights and freedoms of citizens, the interests of society and the state, a patriot of his Fatherland. The purpose of the study is the theoretical substantiation of the model of general professional initial training as the first stage of professional training (initial level of professional training of police officers), police officers first recruited, which is aimed at the formation of the personality of police officers with a basic level of general professional knowledge, skills, personal qualities and readiness to implement them in further professional activities. On the basis of the formed basic knowledge, skills, skills, professional and moral ideals, values and ethical norms, a police officer already within the framework of general professional initial training should become a person ready and capable of mastering new general professional knowledge, skills, abilities throughout his professional life. In conditions of insufficient general education and physical training of citizens accepted for training and increased requirements for the personal and professional qualities of modern police officers, it is necessary to rebuild the existing professional training, i.e. reformat the content of the educational process, forms, methods, means, technologies of training at the initial stage. The need to make changes in the professional training of police officers, who were first recruited, is caused by the increased requirements for their daily activities. At the present stage, a police officer needs to have formed basic general professional knowledge, skills, skills and personal qualities. Among them: respect for the honor and dignity of citizens, self-demanding and responsibility, determination and decency, morality and dedication, initiative and stress resistance, readiness for interaction and cooperation, physical fitness, readiness for the lawful use of force and special means, including firearms, etc.

Teacher professional learning is an integral component to support the increasingly complex skills learners need in order to succeed in the 21st century. The purpose of this chapter is to compare teacher professional development in Singapore, South Africa, and Zimbabwe and identify gaps and share good practices between the countries to help teachers learn and refine instructional strategies. Continuous professional teacher development, which is managed by the South African Council of Educators, is a system that encourages educators to grow professionally. Zimbabwe has mainly relied on cascaded professional development workshops. However, critics of this model of professional development argue that this model often has no meaningful impact on classroom practice. In Singapore, most professional development is subject specific and provides teachers with opportunities for networked learning, collegial sharing, and collaboration. From the findings, the recommendation is that there is need for cooperation between countries to strengthen teacher professional development systems.

The article considers the peculiarities of pedagogical practice by future primary school teachers in terms of distance learning. We characterize pedagogical practice as an original form of education in the process of professional and pedagogical training in higher education, which is aimed at learning the laws and principles of professional activity, mastering the methods of its organization, and thus training future teachers as a professionally competent specialist. We outline the professional and pedagogical training of future primary school teachers for pedagogical practice as a purposeful process focused on the formation of the competence of future primary school teachers to perform professional pedagogical functions in the New Ukrainian School. The purpose, tasks and content of pedagogical practice are revealed, the peculiarities of the organization of distance learning at Pavlo Tychyna Uman State Pedagogical University and the peculiarities of conducting practices during circumstances that make it impossible for students-interns to visit general secondary education are analysed. The article proves that pedagogical practice is the initial stage of practical preparation of students for professional activity, which lays the foundations of practical skills, knowledge of laws and principles of professional activity, mastering the methods of its organization, and thus training future teachers as a professionally competent specialist. We consider educational IT-projects that can be used by students for the purpose of analysis of lessons and educational activities, give recommendations to students-interns on passing pedagogical practice in the conditions of distance learning.

The main objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of professional development on teacher performance in Bungokho sub-county, Mbale District, Uganda. The specific objectives of the study were: to find out how teacher professional development programmes are provided in primary schools; to establish the key indicators of teacher performance and to establish the Relationship between teachers’ professional development and teacher performance in primary schools in Bungokho Sub County, Mbale district. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative research designs. The population of the study consisted of; classroom teachers, deputy head teachers, directors of studies and head teachers which totals to 150 all drawn from 13 schools. The study sampled these through, purposive and simple random sampling techniques guided by Morgan (1970) which gave the study sample of respondents to 108 from the 13 schools. The instruments used were Questionnaires, documentary review and interview guide for teachers and head teachers respectively. Results indicated that teacher professional development programmes contributed to 30.6% towards teachers’ performance. The study also revealed that as much 90.3% of the teachers were efficient, the level of effectiveness was low (at 7.8%). The study recommended that teachers’ professional development gaps be identified through a needs assessment to ensure that real professional development needs are addressed and adhered to; that the directorate of education standards to reduce the number of schools under CCTs and work out a way of recruiting more CCTs to reduce a burden to a manageable level. Head teachers should play their role of professionally supporting the teachers in their schools; Peer support among teachers be encouraged in all schools.

BackgroundHealthcare workers must maintain their knowledge, attitude, and skills regarding the most recent technology and competencies to deliver quality health care. The Ministry of Health, Ethiopia developed guidelines and directives for the utilization of continuous professional development programs. However, there is limited evidence on utilization and barriers to utilization in the study area. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the utilization and barriers to the utilization of continuous professional development among health professionals working in health facilities in eastern Ethiopia.MethodsA health facility-based cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted among 731 healthcare professionals from September 01, 2022, and October 30, 2022. A multistage sampling technique was utilized. A simple random sampling technique selected health facilities and study participants. A self-administered questionnaire developed from national continuous professional development guidelines was disseminated to healthcare professionals working in the selected forty health centers and four hospitals. STATA statistical package version 14 was used for data analysis. A descriptive summary was used to summarize the variables. A logistic regression model was used to assess the association between independent variables and the outcome variable. Adjusted odds ratios along with 95% CIs were estimated to assess the strength of the association, and a p-value < 0.05 was used to declare the level of statistical significance in the analysis.ResultsContinuous professional development utilization was determined for 731 healthcare professionals, of whom 241 (32.97%) [(95% CI: (29.55, 36.38)] had utilized continuous professional development. Lack of continuous professional development knowledge AOR 0.23 [(95% CI: 0.14, 0.37)], being female AOR 0.58 [(95% CI: 0.39, 0.86)], lack of internet access AOR 0.62 [(95% CI: 0.43, 0.89)], greater than 20 km distance from main road AOR 0.58 [(95% CI: 0.37, 0.91)], not heard importance of continuous educational units AOR 0.45 [(95% CI: 0.31, 0.65)], and poor perceived need of continuous professional development AOR 0.61 [(95% CI: 0.38, 0.97)], had a negative statistically significant association with the utilization of continuous professional development.ConclusionThe utilization of continuous professional development in the study area was low. Health sectors and stakeholders working on continuous professional development programs are required to focus on developing strategies for knowledge creation, female health workers, and access to the internet, remote areas, information on the importance of continuous educational units, and the variety of needs of professionals for continuous professional development implementation.

This paper highlights the opinion of primary school Physical Education (P.E) teachers on the factors influencing integration of physical education into primary education curriculum in Oyo State. The paper tries to examine the meaning of curriculum as advanced by some scholars. It discusses the indispensable need for proper curriculum implementation. Moreover, an important focus of the paper pivots on the factors influencing the integration of Physical Education in primary school curriculum. Descriptive research design was used for this study. The population for this study consists the primary school teachers in Ibadan South West Local Government Area of Oyo State. 149 subjects were served with questionnaire to elicit responses on their opinions regarding factors influencing integration of P.E into primary education curriculum in Oyo State. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses of chi square (X2) were used to test the hypotheses that were generated at a significant relationship of 0.05 alpha levels. The result of the findings revealed that, time allotted to P.E in primary schools have an influence on integration of P.E in the primary school curriculum. It also revealed that, availability of sport facilities and other infrastructure for P.E classes in primary schools have positive influence on integration of P.E in the primary school curriculum.

© 2016 Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation. Within Aotearoa/New Zealand primary schools, External Providers (EPs) have steadily increased their influence on physical education. The purpose of this study was to explore and interpret classroom teachers’ perspectives of EPs in their primary school. The research team obtained questionnaire responses from 487 classroom teachers from 133 different primary and intermediate schools in six regions across Aotearoa/New Zealand. In addition, 33 classroom teachers, selected from the six regions as a purposive sample [Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (3rd ed.). Newbury, CA: Sage], were interviewed. The research utilised a case-study design [Stake, R. E. (2005). Qualitative case studies. In N. Denzin &amp; Y. Lincoln (Eds.), The sage handbook of qualitative research (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage] and incorporated a mixed-methods approach [Greene, J. C. (2007). Mixed methods in social inquiry. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass]. Our findings support the belief that EPs are established as major providers of physical education and sport in the primary schools space. Teachers identified a large number of EPs (n = 638) active in their schools. A number of categories were drawn from the interviews: Prevalence of EPs, Expertise and professional development (PD), Valued programs, Evaluation and assessment of EP provided programs and Pedagogical limitations. The teachers valued the EPs for their expertise, PD and the opportunities for students to experience a wide range of sports. However, schools conducted little assessment or evaluation of the programs. Teachers expressed some criticisms around the pedagogical approaches used and the EPs’ lack of knowledge of the curriculum. As a profession it is our responsibility to ensure that all students experience quality physical education programs and that EPs are working in ways that maximise the benefits for our students.

Since the first democratic elections in 1994, South Africa's education system has undergone four curriculum revisions. In each of these iterations, the teachers who were among the first in line to implement change were the Foundation Phase (FP) teachers. However, since then, the low numeracy and literacy levels of primary school learners have been of increasing concern. In this context, in 2017, a series of continuous professional development (CPD) workshops were run with 18 Grade 3 FP teachers from five no-fee primary schools in the Cape Winelands to enhance their use of assessment to improve teaching and learning. This professional development model comprised six monthly workshops, in which the teachers were introduced to various assessment for learning (AfL) techniques and strategies. Each workshop was subsequently supplemented with a classroom support visit by one of the workshop presenters. A few months after the conclusion of the workshops and support visits, the participating teachers, subject advisers, management, and district officials were interviewed about programme efficacy. What emerged was that although all stakeholders saw value in this CPD initiative, the subject advisers and teachers felt that they had particularly benefitted from the programme in terms of the training received, the training model, materials, and follow-up support visits. However, despite the teachers' enthusiasm, there was a varied level of implementation of AfL practices in classrooms-shaped by the context in which the schools were located and their internal dynamics. Affecting the efficacy of the programme-and thus having implications for sustainability-were extraneous factors such as programme timing, competing priorities, and school dynamics. This suggests that for any such CPD programme to succeed, the various factors that could inhibit programme success need to be noted and circumvented.